Grand Arena Matchmaking

"herd_nerfer;c-2446625" wrote:

"Ragnarok_COTF;c-2446622" wrote:

"herd_nerfer;c-2446614" wrote:

"scuba;c-2446583" wrote:

"Cordead1974;c-2446557" wrote:
My last 4 match ups in Bronze 3 have been 6.8M - 8.4Mgp. I am a newly aquired 4.2Mgp. How does this pan out as a good idea? The real issue is more than the match ups, its also that higher GP accounts are purposely dropping for easy wins. This shouldnt be a factor, newer people are going to leave if they have to face these kinds of troubles. There is no fun in this kind of system.

I don't drop for easy wins. I drop mostly cause I don't care to always attack.

This. This right here is why higher GP accounts sink.

We are doing GAC 75% of the time. ANYTHING gets tiresome when you do it 75% of the time. And sometimes people have stuff going on and can't devote time to the game - or just to GAC specifically. We all play in the same ecosystem so bigger accounts and smaller accounts are bound to cross paths - it's inevitable.

GAC is in season 75% of the time. But you only have 9 attack phases every 28 days. Unless you're thoroughly scouting and altering defense every round (few in K1 bother anymore), I'd say 32% is more accurate.

Yes, it's in season 75% of the time - but we're still "on" for that time and GAC is a thing that plenty of players are thinking about or preparing for, even if it's not the attack phase. I can't really tell if you're disagreeing with my main point or just disputing the semantics?

The point is, between burn-out/fatigue and RL interference, the number of players that are giving GAC 100% effort 100% of the time is small. The idea that everyone should occupy a place on the ladder that corresponds with their skill level and roster size is based on the idea that everyone is always playing to their fullest - which doesn't happen in practice. So you inevitably end up with bigger accounts sinking farther than they "should" and smaller accounts climbing more than they should be able to. Even if we removed all the players that phone it in most of the time, there would still be plenty of unbalanced matches due to how the system deals with inconsistent levels of effort from the players.

As an aside - K1, being the smallest subset of players in GAC, is perhaps not the best example of how the population on the whole interacts with the game mode - which is something that K1 players are quick to point out when it's convenient. It's pretty well established that K1 players (and even K2 players to a certain degree) have a very different experience in GAC than everyone else. Or at least, that's what they keep saying - I wouldn't know as I'm not that ambitious - or that skilled at PVP.

I believe we are quite aligned on the GAC issues. I am mostly disputing semantics, but not just to be a pedantic ass. I apologize if it came across that way.

I agree with your point that GAC burnout is real, but I don't think it's because it's "on" X% of the time. I also agree with your point that IRL makes it hard for even the most try-hard players to give their full effort every round.

The reason I brought up K1 was because I consider us to generally be the most likely group to maximize effort. And yet, much of K1 is just good accounts coasting and not fully engaging. This I think bolsters your point about burnout/fatigue.

Tying back to my 32% figure. I meant to illustrate that the active days of GAC are not overwhelming. For me, the issue is that I can't choose which days attack phases fall on. I live in central US, have 3 kids, and a standard white collar work schedule. Wednesday nights are not good for me to attack. If I have the energy to stay up and do battles, I'm tired and not terribly focused. The following morning/lunch break aren't any better. I may be more alert, but time constraints can be a major issue.

What I would prefer would be a system reminiscent of the Starcraft ladder. I would gladly enter a matchmaking lobby and play 2 or 3 GAC rounds in quick succession on many Friday and Saturday nights. In my imaginary world, our GAC defenses are stored for default placement. But you would be given 15 minutes or so after a match is made to make any adjustments you want based on some quick scouting. Then you would be given 2 hours to complete your attacks. Round ends early if both players clear the board or push a button to indicate they are done.